Now that Spring is officially here in Boulder, we’ve been opening the windows to let fresh air, inspiration, and new fragrances, in. Here at the studio, we’ve also been opening the doors, figuratively and literally; seeing more fragrance fans in the past few weeks than we have in the past few months. (It’s been AMAZING to see you all!)
And as we meet more and more new clients, one topic has been coming up in conversation as we curate our collection to match the perfect scents with each person: layering. We get tons of emails asking questions about layering, too. Everything from how do I start? to how will I know what will work well? and what should I avoid? come up. I’ve talked to many about layering and just how much fun it can be, but I often encounter folks feeling intimidated by the prospect of “making a hot mess” on their skin. Here are some tips to help get you started and hopefully, make it a super fun and creative experience (since this is what it’s all about: experimentation and having fun).
1) Find out a little information about your favorite perfumes. What are the dominant notes? What are the notes you love best in the scent? It’s definitely easier to understand who to layer scents if you can notice the fragrance patterns or notes that overlap / make a through line. Do you find vanilla, sandalwood, jasmine, or lily of the valley, again and again in the fragrances that you love? This info is invaluable when considering a layering partner.
Whether you love more complex perfumes or minimal scents, it’s easiest to start by layering with simple, ’single notes’ or ‘accord’ scents that will accentuate a note that you love in either style fragrance. For example, Giverny in Bloom is a complex, ‘whole garden’, green floral perfume, so layering with a single note fragrance like Mysore Sandalwood would accentuate the woody base notes and add a creamier feel to the fragrance; while adding a soft, floral musk note like African Musk would soften the entire fragrance as a whole and push the florals in the heart just a bit. For an example of layering that can still keep things minimal, let’s try with Au Lait. Layering Au Lait with a single honey note would add another soft layer of sweetness while keeping it true to a simple, pared down experience. (Another amazing, yet vey different pairing would be Au Lait with Green Rhubarb & Cane Sugar, which brings a fresh, tart green top note layered with a creamy, sweet dry down. It’s quite beautiful).
2) Playing with varying formats, such as oil essences or solid perfumes, is another great way to create nuance and change things up when layering. Oil essences tend to have better fixing qualities due to their density but can wear much closer to the skin, so spraying a more volatile format on top of it can be a great way to layer scents. I generally recommend using a simpler note in the oil essence and adding a more complex fragrance as the spray layer. These two complimentary formats allow the way the two perfumes dry down together to become a part of the new experience of the scent. I love using soft, warm skin scents like Special Formula X-Treme, Firefly, or Little Smile as a base for just about everything. They aren’t so dominant that the spray layer would be overpowered by them. Je Suis la Lune is a jasmine perfume that is made warmer and a bit deeper by layering with Firefly, but so far my favorite pairing is with Balls…Said The Queen, which creates an outrageously lush jasmine / fig/ oud/ tropical fragrance. I also love earthy, amber Alchemy oil essence layered with citrusy scents like Matsu, spicy notes like Tunisian Opium, patchouli notes like Ancient Air, and lush florals like Gardenia Essense.
Lastly, one of the best ways to keep from making ‘messy’ mistakes is to keep this idea in mind: if the two perfumes you are considering are either both, very dominating (strong) or very complex, you may end up with a combination that has just too much going on…which might be overwhelming. Starting off simply and getting to know your scents is the best way to get really creative with layering. Most of all: HAVE FUN!
Here are some more suggestions from the studio (by way of Dawn, Carolyn, and Sarah with a guest suggestion from Ellen) that we have been playing with this Spring:
1) Azucar Negro** with Tubereuse on top (*always have the deeper scent on first with the lighter scent on top).
2) Sweet Dreams with Open Space no.1
3) Orion with Tenderness
4) Bois du Chocolat with Passport a` Paris
5) Songbird with d’Anjou
6) Fur Accord no.2 with Honey Accord no.2
7) Bois Fumée with Azucar Negro**
8) Grappa e Bergamotto with Le Fauve de Bergamot no.1
9) Estancia with Dutchess Meadows
10) Vanilla Cookie Dough with Azucar Negro**
** You may have noticed Azucar Negro figuring in heavily on our layering list and that’s because we have found this fragrance to be a “perfect partner” to just about everything we have tried layering with it. It seems to want to sing harmony with everyone, and we love that.
ps: One more thing I’d also like to say is that layering can be a wonderful mindfulness tool. This is yet another way to approach layering from an entirely different vantage point. Start with these questions:
– How do I feel today?
– How do I want to feel today?
– How can my scent choice boost whatever is on my agenda for today (if you have one…)?
The answers to these questions will help you gravitate towards the styles of scents that best fit how you define the mood you’re in or how you want to feel. From here the same principles from above come into play in terms of what to consider layering to create your perfect scent of the day or night.
